Fuji GX617 Panoramic Photography

Thirty Seconds at Dusk

Fuji GX617 panorama of night-blooming Evening-snow and diverse wildflowers photographed at dusk in Gorman, California, 2003.
Night-blooming Evening-snow (Linanthus dichotomus) emerges among California poppies, coreopsis, pygmy lupines, lacy phacelia, Bentham lupines, globe gilia, fiddlenecks, white layia and tidy tips as daylight fades · Gorman / Peace Valley · California · 2003.
About the Photograph

As the sun disappeared and daylight faded across the Gorman Hills, night-blooming Evening-snow (Linanthus dichotomus) began opening among a remarkably diverse mixture of wildflowers. Photographing the scene with extensive depth of field required an unusually long 30-second exposure, preserving a landscape caught at the transition between daylight and dusk.

Look Closer

Evening-snow Opens at Dusk

Across the full panorama, the miniature blue lupines are easy to overlook within the larger wildflower display. In this enlarged detail, they become much easier to see. At the same time, the night-blooming Evening-snow is just beginning to open while the California poppies are closing as the last daylight fades.
Enlarged detail from Thirty Seconds at Dusk showing night-blooming Evening-snow among a diverse mixture of Gorman wildflowers.
Detail from the Fuji GX617 panorama showing night-blooming Evening-snow opening within the surrounding wildflower field.
Technical Details
Location:
Gorman / Peace Valley, California
Year:
2003
Camera:
Fuji GX617
Format:
6×17 cm panoramic transparency film
Film:
Fuji Velvia 100
Aperture:
f/50
Exposure:
30 seconds
Filters:
Center filter · Neutral-density filter
Field Notes

The light was disappearing quickly as the sun dropped below the horizon. I wanted enough depth of field to hold the flowers and landscape together across the panoramic frame, and at f/50 the exposure stretched to a full 30 seconds.

That made the photograph unusually difficult. At this elevation there is often some breeze moving across the hills, and during a 30-second exposure even slight movement in the flowers can become visible. The scene required a rare interval of relative stillness while the remaining daylight continued to fade.

As dusk settled over the landscape, the Evening-snow began opening among California poppies, coreopsis, pygmy lupines, lacy phacelia, Bentham lupines, globe gilia, fiddlenecks, white layia and tidy tips. The photograph preserves that brief transition when the daytime bloom and the night-blooming flowers occupied the landscape together.

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